InfluenceWave in Financial Advisor IQ

Google Tweak Reminds FAs to Get Mobile-Friendly

A change next month in how websites will show up in some Google searches could signal an opportunity for financial advisors to stand out from competitors in an increasingly mobile world, writes Thomas Coyle in Financial Advisor IQ. Excerpt:

Mark Rose counsels FAs to be sure their websites are mobile-friendly — in the name of plain utility as much as to conform to search-engine criteria. “You need to be seen on all three: PCs, tablets and phones,” he says. “It’s simply necessary” — and a potential competitive advantage over rivals who aren’t readily viewable on an iPhone or Android device.

In this sense, he thinks the news from Google may persuade advisors with old-line websites to join the mobile age. “That can be hard to do, especially if the website is only three years old and they think it should last seven,” Rose says.

Fortunately, while website design can set an advice firm back from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, not all sites will need a complete overhaul. “Some, you can make mobile-compatible,” says Rose — in fact, Google has a how-to for such cases. “But sometimes you just have to do it all over.”